The Scarlet Pimpernel at CPT

I really love the musical The Scarlet Pimpernel because the story is so thrilling (I read the novel by Baroness Orczy at least 812 times when I was a teenager) and the music is incredibly powerful (I have the Original Broadway Cast recording and I listen to it often).  I always try to see it whenever it is playing (I have seen three different productions at HCT) so, as you can imagine, I have been anticipating CPT's version since they announced the 2021 season! I was able to see it last night and I had so much fun. Percy Blakeney (Ben Lowell) disguises himself as the Scarlet Pimpernel and recruits a band of followers (Benjamin Christian Plowman, Thad Weiland, Jared Daley, Ryan Zaugg, John Kenning, and Regan Whimpey) in order to save the people of Paris from Chauvelin (Jacob Omer) and his guillotine during the French Revolution. He keeps his identity a secret from his wife Marguerite St. Just (Anya Young Wilson), a Parisian actress, because he believes that she is helping Chauvelin, her former lover. He is also keeping his identity a secret from the Prince of Wales (Chris Kennedy) by pretending to be a foppish nincompoop. However, he must make his most daring rescue when Marguerite and her brother Armand (Derek Marsden) are arrested. Lowell and Wilson are outstanding as Percy and Marguerite, especially in the songs "You Are My Home" and "When I Look At You" which they sing together. Lowell is very powerful in "Into The Fire," absolutely hilarious in "The Creation of Man," and incredibly moving in "She Was There." I loved all of his interactions with Chauvelin, particularly when he mispronounces his name. Wilson is quite affecting in "I'll Forget You." Omer has an beautiful voice in the songs "Falcon In The Dive" and "Where's The Girl" but his acting is strangely without a lot of affect. I feel like he should be a bit more menacing in his interactions with Marguerite and more exasperated with Percy. I really enjoyed the choreography, especially the intricate "Ouilles Gavotte" where Marguerite questions the men to find out the identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel at the ball and "The Duel" where both Percy and Marguerite engage in a sword fight with Chauvelin. The sets are very elaborate and I really liked the prison and guillotine, Percy's study, the ship used by the Pimpernel and his League to get to Paris, and the rose garden.  The moving of the various set pieces on and off the stage is a complicated process and, at times, it pulls focus from the action still happening on stage but it is very quick. Finally, the costumes are a definite highlight. I loved all of the embroidery on the fabric used for the women's costumes but, unusually, my favorites were those worn by the men.  The Pimpernel and his League take "frou frou" to a whole new level in "The Creation of Man." I am always so impressed by the quality of the productions at CenterPoint and this one is outstanding. I highly recommend it (go here for tickets).

Note: CPT recently announced their 2022 season which includes The Play That Goes Wrong, Cinderella, Big Fish, Bright Star, TBA, and Elf the Musical. I am looking forward to all of them and I've already renewed my subscription!

The Eyes of Tammy Faye

I distinctly remember watching the downfall of televangelist Jim Bakker on the nightly news (the footage of him being led away with a jacket over his handcuffs was used every time there was an update to the case) when I was a teenager and I had very strong feelings about the hypocrisy of religious leaders using their platform to profit personally from money donated by believers (I still do).  I was, therefore, very excited to see The Eyes of Tammy Faye and I finally had the chance last night.  I really enjoyed the performances, especially Jessica Chastain as Tammy Faye, as well as the production design but I was ultimately quite disappointed by the shallow analysis of the title character.  The movie follows Tammy Faye as a child (played by Chandler Head) in a religious household who is viewed as a sinner because she is a product of a marriage that ended in divorce, as a student (now played by Chastain) at Bible college who becomes enamored with fellow student Jim Bakker (Andrew Garfield) because of his belief in a prosperity gospel, as an itinerant preacher with her new husband delivering a message with puppets, as the host of a children's TV show for Pat Robertson (Gabriel Olds) and his Christian broadcasting network, as an antagonist to Jerry Fallwell (Vincent D'Onofrio) for her views on religious inclusion, as a host for the Bakker's own PTL (Praise The Lord) network which broadcast their ministry by satellite to millions of viewers 24 hours a day, as the benefactor of a lavish lifestyle with money funneled from the contributions of those viewers, and, finally, as the supposed victim of her husband's wrongdoing.  Chastain gives a brilliant performance which captures all of Tammy Faye's idiosyncratic mannerisms (her nervous giggle is absolutely spot-on) and I was especially impressed that she did her own singing.  I also enjoyed Garfield's performance as the embattled televangelist, particularly when he delivers Bakker's catchphrase, "God loves you. He really does."  This movie also does a fantastic job at recreating the ostentation of the 80s from the sumptuous interiors to the flamboyant costumes.  My biggest issue is with the overly sympathetic depiction of Tammy Faye.  I have a really difficult time believing that she was not complicit in, or at least aware of, the bilking of their viewers for personal gain.  We are meant to believe that she was assertive enough to force her way to Jerry Fallwell's table at a BBQ and to proclaim her views about the responsibilities Christians have to love everyone despite opposition from other powerful religious leaders but that she allowed herself to be a pawn in all of Jim's schemes and knew nothing about the day-to-day operations of PTL.  Also this movie does not shed much light on what actually happened to bring about their downfall.  To be sure, this is Tammy Faye's story and it is told completely from her perspective rather than Jim's but I wish we could have had more details about the scandal.  I did enjoy the movie, and would recommend it, but I didn't learn much about the protagonist beyond what I already knew.

Ludovic Morlot Conducts Stravinsky & Rachmaninoff

I love Rachmaninoff, especially Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, so last night's Utah Symphony concert will definitely be a highlight of the season for me because I got to hear it performed brilliantly by the orchestra and guest soloist Gerorge Li.  The concert began with The Fairy's Kiss by Igor Stravinsky.  This piece is a ballet based on the short story The Ice Maiden by Hans Christian Andersen and was written as an homage to Tchaikovsky to commemorate the 35th anniversary of his death.  It tells the story of a fairy who rescues an abandoned baby from a storm and then marks it with a kiss.  When the fairy encounters the baby again as a young man on the eve of his wedding, she kisses him again to claim him for herself.  Stravinsky blended several of Tchaikovsky's themes with his own for this ballet and I really enjoyed it.  I thought it was very lyrical and romantic, despite the somewhat tragic story, and I especially liked the themes played by the woodwinds and the brass.  After the intermission the orchestra played The Sorcerer's Apprentice by Paul Dukas.  It is based on a poem by Johann von Goethe about a young sorcerer who gets in over his head when attempting some of his master's magic but, when I heard the playful and whimsical music, all I could see was Mickey Mouse trying to control a broom in the movie Fantasia!  The concert concluded with the piece I had been waiting for all evening (I could hardly contain my excitement during the pieces that preceded it) and it definitely did not disappoint!  Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini was inspired by Nicolo Paganini's Caprices for Solo Violin and includes 24 different variations.  I love all of them because they are all so beautiful and lush but my very favorite is the 18th variation because it is almost unbearably romantic and I was practically swooning during the whole thing (it is featured in the movie Somewhere in Time).  George Li gave an amazing performance (I loved watching his fingers fly up and down the keyboard) which garnered a boisterous standing ovation which was rewarded with an encore at its conclusion.  I loved this concert and I suggest that you stop what you are doing right now and get a ticket (go here) for the concert tonight which features the same program.  You will thank me later!

Alanis Morissette at USANA

My sister Kristine and I are huge fans of Alanis Morissette!  Both of us have seen in her in concert several times (including once together) so, when we heard the announcement that Morissette was launching a tour commemorating 25 years since the release of her ground-breaking album Jagged Little Pill and that she would be making a stop in SLC, we immediately bought tickets and started counting down the days.  Then, of course, Covid canceled everything and I have to admit that I was really disappointed about missing this show (among others).  I was absolutely delighted when I heard the news that Morissette was rescheduling the whole tour and it was so great to return to USANA Amphitheatre last night for the first time in over two years!  My sister and I loved this show so much because Morissette can still belt out a tune!  As expected, she played Jagged Little Pill in its entirety (although she pushed shuffle) and I especially enjoyed the hits "All I Really Want," "Hand in My Pocket," "You Learn," Head Over Feet," "Ironic," and "You Oughta Know."  There was a time when I played these songs incessantly but I haven't heard them in a long time.  Even so, I still knew every single word and sang them right along with the entire crowd!  I also really enjoyed it when Morissette performed a snippet of a song from a later album as an intro to a deeper cut from Jagged Little Pill (her songs work very well together thematically) such as "Hands Clean" before "Forgiven," "Everything" before "Mary Jane," "Nemesis" before "Perfect," and "Losing the Plot" before "Wake Up."  She also performed a few songs from her latest album Such Pretty Forks in the Road and I especially liked "Reasons I Drink" and "Smiling," a song Morissette wrote for the Broadway show Jagged Little Pill (which is near the top of my list of shows I want to see).  Whenever I attend a concert there is always a song that I hope to hear from a performer's back catalog.  It is usually pretty obscure so I am invariably disappointed but I was absolutely thrilled when Morissette played "Uninvited" during the encore!  She also performed "Your House" in a variety music genres (it was quite amusing) and "Thank U" as a way to thank the fans for coming out to support her.  This concert was so much fun because I got to see it with my sister and because I was transported back to my younger self (without the angst).

Note:  The opening band was Garbage and I think I was looking forward to seeing them just as much as Morissette.  When I was younger I thought Shirley Manson was the coolest girl ever with her Doc Martens, dark eyeliner, and sassy hands on her hips attitude!  They didn't play my favorite song, "Supervixen," but they did play "Stupid Girl," "#1 Crush," "I Think I'm Paranoid," "Special," and "Only Happy When It Rains" interspersed with some of their newer material.  I loved their set!

Ain't Misbehavin' at PTC

The joint was jumping (in more ways than one) last night as audiences returned to PTC after an absence of 18 months for the musical Ain't Misbehavin'.  When the 2021-2022 season was announced, I didn't know anything about this show but I discovered that it is a musical revue featuring the songs of Thomas "Fats" Waller, a well-known jazz pianist and composer who wrote over 400 songs from 1920 to 1940.  It was basically a concert featuring five incredibly talented and charismatic vocalists, including Tyla Collier (she was in Once on This Island, the last show I saw at PTC before the pandemic), Tyrick Wiltez Jones, Mariah Lyttle, Terita Redd, and DeMone Seraphin, and an equally talented band on stage, including Music Director William Knowles on piano, Michale Evans on trombone, Otis Gould on drums, Keith Parietti on tenor sax and clarinet, Hillary Fuller on bass, Scott Harris on alto sax and clarinet, and Jesdelson Vasquez on trumpet.  They performed close to 30 different songs during the 90 minute run time and, even though I wasn't very familiar with Waller, I recognized at least a third of the songs.  My favorites were "Mean to Me," a torch song delivered by Redd while leaning seductively against the piano, a sultry version of "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now" performed by Collier, a rousing rendition of "The Ladies Who Sing With The Band" by Jones and Seraphin, a hilarious performance of "Your Feet's Too Big" by Seraphin, the innuendo-filled "Squeeze Me" by Lyttle, and the heartbreaking "Black and Blue" performed by the whole company with beautiful harmonies and dramatic lighting.  There was almost no dialogue, beyond the occasional ad-libbing with audience members (some of which was highly amusing), and the choreography was simple but executed very well.  At the beginning of the show the set consisted of a backstage area in shadows with instruments covered in dust cloths and a ghost light prominently displayed.  The performers entered the stage from different areas, removed  their coats, and arranged their instruments and props before the first number began.  As the show progressed, the stage became more and more elaborate (I loved all of the chandeliers) until it was transformed into several different jazz clubs.  I don't know if the show is always staged in this manner but it was a highly effective way to represent the return to live performances after a lengthy break.  I really enjoyed this wildly entertaining show but, unfortunately, I did not get to see the last few numbers because the theater was evacuated when a fire alarm went off (this is the second time this has happened to me during a performance).  Even so, I highly recommend this show which runs through September 25 (go here for tickets).